Welcome to the first Westford Land Stewardship Newsletter! We hope to keep all stewards informed through regular meetings and through our periodic Westford Stewardship Newsletter.

On April 16, 1998 the first town-wide Land Stewardship meeting was held in the Westford Museum. The turnout was great with over 30 people attending and almost half looking to volunteer for land stewardship duties! A lot of questions and suggestions were brought up about Westford Land Stewardship. We hope that this newsletter can answer some of the questions raised, and be the start of a strong Westford Land Steward program. We’ve got some big plans over the next year or so. The projects includes a Westford Land Steward Handbook, trail cutting, trail clearing, sign posting, nature walks, etc. just to name a few! We hope you enjoy this newsletter and wish to hear from you regarding any ideas you have about it. Volunteers are always welcome!

A big welcome to the following new Westford Land Stewards: Craig Doolittle, Diane and Bill Duane, Tom Ennis, Ralph Hinckley, Eric and Gladys Laushine, Rick Lofria, Nancy Rosinski, Susan Tordella-Williams and Dean Wormell. We’ll be contacting you soon!

If you’re already a Land Steward, and haven’t sent in a steward report this year, please fill out the attached reporting form and mail it to Mike Killoran.

On Sunday, June 21^st, at 10AM we’re planning on creating a small trail on the Slifer Conservation land (this newsletter’s featured property!). We’re planning on a two hour effort and hope to get a good portion, if not all, of the trail created. We’d love you to help out. If you’d like to help, simply show up at the Slifer property entrance (on Keyes Road near the corner of Gould Road) at 10AM on June 21^st. Bring one or more of the following: a rake, a hand saw, pruners, gloves, and bug spray. Contact John Piekos (692-8922) with any questions. We hope to see you there!

One of the biggest issues brought up at the Land Stewardship Kick-off meeting last month was the question of what a land steward can and cannot do to their property. Here’s a few general tips. A complete list will be included in our Land Stewardship Handbook which we hope to have available by the end of the year.

If in doubt, feel free to contact one of the Steering Committee members.

Often, a Boy Scout will approach the town with a proposed Eagle Scout project that would improve town-owned land. Past projects have included handicap access work at Grassy Pond and a bridge at the high school among many others. This past month, Will Bunker, an aspiring Eagle Scout, approached the town with an ambitious cleanup and restoration project for the Slifer Conservation Land.

The Slifer land, which abuts Keyes pond, was once a beautifully manicured and landscaped property. Over the years the property became somewhat overgrown and accumulated a lot of litter. Will organized a large group of volunteers, including land steward Rina Caldwell. Over the course of several weekends in May, Will completed his project with tremendous results. There is now a well-defined parking area (bounded by possibly the largest rhododendrons in Westford) near the road. A farm-style gate has been installed and painted. Three picnic tables have been installed at various sites on the property. These picnic areas provide a peaceful location to have lunch with the family and observe the local wildlife such as three Canadian Goose families. But be sure to bring the bug spray! In addition to the picnic areas, Will and his volunteers cleared an access area to Keyes pond. (Keyes Pond is a pleasant 5 to 10 minute walk from the parking area.) In the future, we hope to have a floating dock installed. As part of Will’s cleanup effort he filled a large dumpster full of debris.

The Slifer property is located at the corner of Keyes Road and Gould Road (just around the corner from the Picking/Gould Farm). The entrance to the property is located on Keyes Road and is marked by three mortared stone pillars. Be sure to check it out!

Marian Harmon, President of the Westford Conservation Trust, tracks flora and fauna sightings for our town. Please contact her for any unusual sightings of plants and animals. Recently, Marian has been searching for Westford’s biggest and oldest trees so feel free to measure the circumference (at chest height) of a noteworthy tree and pass the information along to her. Marian can be reached at 692-3907.

The Westford Conservation Trust has produced a publication titled Westford Trails. This document includes trail descriptions and maps for over a half a dozen trails and conservation plots in Westford. But this book is far from complete as there are many trails found on Trust land, town conservation land and conservation restricted land that are not included. The Trust would love to add to this book. If you can write a descriptive trail description and possibly draw a map of the trail the Westford Conservation Trust would love to add your description to the book! Contact Bill Harmon at 692-3907 for details on how to get your trail description into the next volume of Westford Trails.

Our next Stewardship meeting will occur this fall. Stay tuned for details.

Would you like to help with various land stewardship projects? Do you have special equipment (chain saws, truck, etc.) that you’d be willing to make available for special projects? If so, let us know. We’d like to create a volunteers and equipment list as a resource for future projects. Contact Mike Killoran at killoran@LL.mit.edu with your information.

We’re looking for information to include in the next newsletter. The types of things needed include any of the following: